That's a classic straw man argument. No one on this thread has suggested that a single individual buying locally would have an impact on the global marketplace. Nor did anyone suggest that those purchasing decisions could or should derail global trade as it is.

However, thousands of individuals buying American made screwdrivers, for example, would make a huge difference to the fortunes of an American tool manufacturer, its materials suppliers and the company's employees and families. Some people are just naive enough to be willing to pay a premium to buy an American made screwdriver from a local hardware store than a similar tool made in a low wage country and sold through a big box retailer. In the end, the former transaction supports living wage jobs here while the latter does much less. It's a big part of the reason why personal income tax cuts don't stimulate the US economy as much as they used to. People today buy stuff with those tax savings, yes, but they spend that money on stuff that does little for their domestic economy.

The little neighborhood hardware store was replaced by Home Depot a mile away. Howard's drugs up the street, owned by the pharmacist himself, gave way to a Walgreens a block away, so Walgreens also put the independant One-Hour lab out of business. 7-11 did in the neighborhood independant grocers. A significant amount of things I used to get at K-Mart can be bought for less at a "Dollar Store", and K-Mart had already put lots of small businesses out of business.

But go back to the period between WW-I and WW-II, The Great Depression, that strangled the world economy. Companies like S.S. Kresge and Woolworth came up with the concept variously refered to as the Five & Ten or Five and Dime. Figuring for inflation, they were the "dollar stores" of their day. They didn't sell cheap Chinese merchandise either. They sold inexpensive items marked "Made In Japan". Yup, Japanese goods at one time carried the same stigma of shoddy quality as Chinese poroducts do today.

In the end it's a chicken and egg conundrum. Which is better? The availability of low priced goods? The availability of good paying jobs? You can have both for awhile, but at some point you gotta pay the piper. That's called a recession when the landlord throws you out. They call it a depression when the bank takes posession of your house.

In the end it's a chicken and egg conundrum. Which is better? The availability of low priced goods? The availability of good paying jobs? You can have both for awhile, but at some point you gotta pay the piper.

Exactly. Global trade is much more complicated than many would let on, and emotion also comes into play. I want to support small business when I can, but on a national level my household is probably lower-middle class in terms of income. I don't feel deprived, but I have a lot of necessities competing for my dollar. If I can save a significant amount on something at Wal-Mart, I'm going to buy it there.

And, it's not all about saving a buck. My local Wal-Mart lab gives me consistently better scans than the ones I used to get from the local 1 Hour place (which were covered with dust).

That's a classic straw man argument. No one on this thread has suggested that a single individual buying locally would have an impact on the global marketplace. Nor did anyone suggest that those purchasing decisions could or should derail global trade as it is.

However, thousands of individuals buying American made screwdrivers, for example, would make a huge difference to the fortunes of an American tool manufacturer, its materials suppliers and the company's employees and families. Some people are just naive enough to be willing to pay a premium to buy an American made screwdriver from a local hardware store than a similar tool made in a low wage country and sold through a big box retailer. In the end, the former transaction supports living wage jobs here while the latter does much less. It's a big part of the reason why personal income tax cuts don't stimulate the US economy as much as they used to. People today buy stuff with those tax savings, yes, but they spend that money on stuff that does little for their domestic economy.

No straw-man here, I am simply pointing out that a rhetoric statements about reversing a global trend that is fueled by one of the most basic human nature (greed) is not realistic nor helpful.

Actually the US is still a very competitive tool maker in the quality market. They compete with other high-end tool manufacturers: in Japan and Germany for instance. I buy US tools when I can at work (someone else is paying the bill). Starrett, Proto, Craftsman, Allen, Hass, Browne and Sharpe, and many others -- it's a long and glorious list.

Quote:

Originally Posted by visiondr

That's a classic straw man argument. No one on this thread has suggested that a single individual buying locally would have an impact on the global marketplace. Nor did anyone suggest that those purchasing decisions could or should derail global trade as it is.

However, thousands of individuals buying American made screwdrivers, for example, would make a huge difference to the fortunes of an American tool manufacturer, its materials suppliers and the company's employees and families. Some people are just naive enough to be willing to pay a premium to buy an American made screwdriver from a local hardware store than a similar tool made in a low wage country and sold through a big box retailer. In the end, the former transaction supports living wage jobs here while the latter does much less. It's a big part of the reason why personal income tax cuts don't stimulate the US economy as much as they used to. People today buy stuff with those tax savings, yes, but they spend that money on stuff that does little for their domestic economy.

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